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Friday, January 27, 2017

It's time to keep your eyes open for this second issue of To Market. This is a second great publication from the same folks that bring us Edible Boston.

Here's the cover that you want.

In my preview copy, I found a fun set of connections. I wrote a recent Fresh & Local newspaper column on following recipes. As I was looking for the perfect thought to wrap up my article, an online conversation with award-winning food writer Maria Speck contained the perfect quote and she gave me permission to use it. (Thanks, Maria!)

I curled up in my chair with the new To Market and found a great article, The Revival of New England Grains by Maria Speck. In it, she gives a bit of history, an outline of the grains that are finally being grown locally, and a list of farms that are adding a missing link to our local tables.

One more link was seeing Four Star Farm on the list of suppliers. This farm gave me my introduction to the great taste of our local grains. A few years ago, they made a guest appearance at the Copley Farmers Market and I was able to buy their whole wheat and Barley.

Naturally, there is a lot more to discover in this issue, so get a copy and enjoy.

Here are Maria Speck's books, if you want to learn a lot more about all those ancient grains that are new again.

First, pick up a copy of To Market at one of these locations. In fact, pick up two copies and share one with a food-loving friend or leave it where someone might discover it among lesser publications and become a new fan.

May I suggest that you let their sponsors know you saw them in the magazine and grab an extra copy and get it to someone else who cares about supporting the local food movement. Also, if you have a blog, twitter account, or facebook page, write about them, link to them, follow them, retweet their tweets, like them on facebook, and in general, spread the word about this great asset to our community.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Learning to cook with two new cooking appliances has me reviewing and following recipes designed specifically for sous vide cooking with my Joule immersion circulator and for pressure cooking with my Instant Pot.

Slowly I’m figuring out whose temperature recommendations and time guidelines for sous vide cooking I can trust. The chicken shown above was cooked at 149 degrees for one hour.

It’s the same way I determine which cookbook authors and websites conduct very good recipe testing and publish reliable guides. Kenji Alt-Lopes and his Sous Vide 101 posts over on Serious Eats seem the most reliable for the taste in our household.

I’m keeping a sous vide journal to record details of each meal cooked and what happens if I do something wrong – like overestimating the thickness of a steak. Since sous vide cooking is something I’ve never attempted, it does come with a bit an experimental, make-a-mistake, correct-it-next-time, learning curve.

Pressure cookers were always in use among members of my extended family and I had one when I lived in a large suburban house. It was one of those things I chose not to move to a tiny city kitchen. Although the learning curve is less steep, I’ve already added too much liquid to a curry, forgetting that in the pressure cooker the sauce was not going to reduce and thicken.

Same Recipe, Different Outcomes

All of this experimentation made me more aware of how daunting learning to cook can be. It helps to realize that the entire process is inexact and even old hands will not have a perfect outcome every time, even if they slavishly follow a recipe.

Jacques uses his recipe for caramelized pears to demonstrate how a cook can go wrong by not adapting a recipe to the conditions and ingredients on hand. For example, unripe pears take longer to cook than ripe ones. In the process of cooking the pears, the sugar used to form the caramel could burn before the unripe fruit cooks through. He also shows how to adapt for each possible problem.

Monday, January 23, 2017

On Sunday morning, the Boston Public Garden and the Boston Common were calm, clean, and quiet. Here the Japanese lantern and its tree companions were reflected in the lagoon. It was a good place to pause and reflect on the weekend happenings.

"Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action." Peter Drucker

About Photo Tales & Quotes: We keep hearing that people miss our cover photos that ran for years in the Back Bay Sun. That assignment was to provide a photo that showed what the week was like in the neighborhood. Often the photos illustrated favorite quotations. Photo Tales & Quotes is an occasional offering to our BostonZest readers featuring photos along the same theme but taken wherever we happen to be.

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Sunday, January 22, 2017

Does your dog hit his “four-paw-braking” button when you open the door to a rainstorm? Or do you have one of those canines who doesn’t mind being wet? So far, our Poppy doesn't seem to mind a rainy day. But, with some rain in the forecast, this is a good time to discuss rainy day dogs.

A dog's attitude to rain is a case where breed, age, and size may make a difference. A tiny, short-haired dog may be cold and miserable in the rain, while a hardy water dog may love a dripping wet walk.

What’s the Problem?

Mary Fuller, DVM, writing about this topic for www.vetstreet.com, points out that for some dogs rain brings on their fear of thunderstorms, “It’s not always clear what brings on the fearful behavior. It may be changes in barometric pressure, static electricity, the crack of lightning bolts or just the sound of wind and rain.”

Dr. Fuller warns that you should never punish your dog for this fear or force her into the rain, but rather use rewards like exuberant praise or treats to coax him outside. She adds that you should see your veterinarian if this behavior is becoming a real problem. A vet may be able to help with guidance or medications.

Poppy figures a good shake solves her rainy day issues.

Our last Westie Maggie Mae did not mind light rain but hated downpours. Try to see if this is the case with your dog and, when possible, watch local radar and pick a break in the storm to go out.

You could also bring along a favorite squeaky toy and a high-value treat. We suggest that the treat be something special that the dog only gets for rainy walks. This is the time for smelly treats that your dog loves. Try a piece of dried cod skin or a stinky cheese that will set your pup drooling.

Finally, try to hide your own distaste for a rainy walk because those feelings may be traveling down the leash to your dog.

Friday, January 20, 2017

Our daily walks often take a group of friends and their dogs on a loop around the lagoon in the Boston Public Garden. Over the past couple of weeks with the freeze/thaw cycles, we've all noticed a growing number of ice fragments scattered across the lagoon and wondered about their origin.

As the ice sparkled in the sun, another garden visitor speculated it might be a beautiful art installation. He had a point. It was stunning in this light.

There were areas of the lagoon that had a lot of these ice fragments and other sections that were free of them.

This area near the wall seemed to have some new fragments being pushed out from the ice sheet.

Theories were discussed each time we circled the pond. Was someone tossing these chunks onto the ice? We all agreed there were far too many for that explanation. Spray from duck and geese landings? Aliens?

We came home and set to researching this phenomenon. In the process, we found the site Lake Ice and learned more about ice on lakes and ponds than we could have ever imagined.

Our ice mystery might be brash ice. The ice glossary at Lake Ice describes this as, "... loose small pieces of ice floating in water or the same in refrozen form. The term is normally used with arctic ice but it applies to lake ice. It is common to see isolated pieces of thicker ice in a new, ice sheet. Usually these pieces are reasonably close to an ice edge."

Any ideas? Let us know.

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Wednesday, January 18, 2017

As I learn to get the best results from my new Joule Sous Vide circulator, I check a number of sites and recommendations for each new item I cook. Often a writer will recommend marinating or adding oil and herbs to the cooking bag with meat or fish.

Sometimes a plan calls for searing with herbs and butter as in this guide for Butter-Basted Sous Vide Halibut from one of my food mentors Kenji Alt-Lopes over on Serious Eats.

It dawned on me that a lot of the time I spend preparing a bag of goodies for their sous vide bath includes using a Microplane or chopping ingredients to add to the bag or to use in the final sear in my trusty cast iron skillet.

Compound Butter is a Sous Vide Winner!

Kenji's recipe inspired me to make a compound butter of parsley, thyme, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and unsalted butter. I melted a bit in the microwave and mixed it with olive oil to add to the sous vide bag with the halibut. Another chunk was added to the pan when I was searing. As this melted, I tipped the pan and spooned the buttery mélange over the fish. The rest of the batch was popped into the freezer.

You can use a food processor to mix the flavor agents into your butter, but unless I'm making a large batch, I just mince my flavors together and use a fork to blend them into the butter right on my cutting board.

This technique not only allows you to prepare a bunch of small batches with different flavors, but it also makes cleanup a lot easier.

Form a log with the butter you are not going to use.

Wrap it, label it, and pop it in the freezer for your next sous vide adventure. With a selection of compound butters in your freezer, your next sous vide dish will take even less prep time.

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